JINDO, South Korea, April 22 -- Death toll in a South Korean ferry sinking accident surged to 99 on Tuesday as more bodies were pulled out of the submerged vessel during overnight search operations.

As of 9 a.m. local time, 99 people had been confirmed dead, with 203 others still missing. The number of those rescued remained unchanged at 174. More than 10 bodies were retrieved during overnight operations.

Divers began entering and searching inside the submerged vessel from Monday, but it led to a surge in death toll. On Monday alone, 28 bodies were retrieved from the ferry.

No survivors or survival signals have been reported yet.

The pan-government response center will hold a press briefing at 10 a.m. local time to explain overnight search and rescue operations.